Ukraine Warns Russians Will Storm Kyiv

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced that he believes Russian forces will storm Kyiv by Saturday morning local time.

Zelenskyy told Ukrainians to make preparations immediately.  “The night will be more difficult than the day,” he said in a televised address on Friday. "Russia will try to break our resistance with all its might."

On a Friday video call, Zelenskyy told European Union leaders that the session may be the final time they see him alive. Ukrainian intel suggests that Russians view Zelenskyy as target number one and his family as second. Zelenskyy remains in Kyiv at this time.

Zelenskyy adds that Chernihiv, Symy, Kharkiv, Donbas, and the south could also come under attack soon.

To this point, the Ukrainian military has held up to Russian forces. Within the last hour, Ukrainian forces say they shot down a Russian Ilyushin Il-76 with soldiers on board south of Kyiv.

A Pentagon official told reporters Friday that the Russians have lost momentum.

"No population centers have been taken," the Pentagon notes. "Russia has yet to achieve air superiority." It's worth clarifying that Russia has only used one-third of its forces massed on the border thus far.

Meanwhile, ABC News reports that Ukraine is in the "initial stage of contacts" for possible negotiations with Russia to end the fighting.

"The two governments are discussing details such as the time and place of the talks, the spokesman, Sergiy Nykyforov, said. The meeting would take place between advisers and aides and not Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin, he added," ABC reports.

"The Kremlin said earlier Friday it was ready to send a delegation for talks to Belarus' capital, Minsk, and claimed Zelenskyy was ready to discuss 'neutral status' for Ukraine. Russia’s foreign ministry later claimed Zelenskyy's administration had said to postpone any more discussion of talks until Saturday."

While the Kremlin says it wants to have a discussion with Ukraine, its actions suggest it won't be compromisable. After all, Putin continues to blame Ukraine for stoking the crisis.

"We cannot lose Kyiv," Zelenskyy said at the end of his address.

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Bobby Burack is a writer for OutKick where he reports and analyzes the latest topics in media, culture, sports, and politics.. Burack has become a prominent voice in media and has been featured on several shows across OutKick and industry related podcasts and radio stations.